It has also asked the government to collect due taxes from casino operators that defaulted timely payment of royalty within 35 days. [break]
The decision is not just limited to casinos, but also to other operators, who run electronic games that are basically opened targeting tourists only, reads the PAC decision.
Such decision from PAC came after its investigation affirmed that the casino operators were not complying with the existing rules and regulations.
Going by the existing law, Nepalis are restricted from making deals at the casinos. However, almost all casinos operating in the country have been allowing locals to play games.
“This is a clear violation of rules,” PAC said in its decision.
The committee also expressed serious concerns over the Ministry of Tourism and Civil Aviation´s (MoTCA) lackluster attitude in monitoring the operations of casinos. The ministry issues licenses to hotels to operate casinos.
“Surprisingly, MoTCA was found of acting lamely even when the casino operators continued to flout tax laws and did not pay due royalties on time,” PAC assessed in its report.
Ten casinos operated in five-star hotels across the country have been defaulting tax payment, even though the existing law asks them to clear royalty of Rs 20 million within the first quarter of the new fiscal year. They were, instead, happily paying penalty for defaulting taxes. Still the revenue administration had not been acting strongly to enforce its own law.
Following media reports, the Department of Revenue Investigation (DRI) had recently summoned casino operators to settle their tax liabilities. Most of the casinos complied DRI´s direction. However, the promoters of Nepal Recreation Center, who have been refusing to budge and against whom the arrest warrants were issued, are still at large.
Given the situation, PAC has directed the government not to allow casinos to operate unless it formulates and put in place appropriate law and operating guidelines. The instruction has been issued to the cabinet, MoTCA and Ministry of Finance.
During the meeting at PAC, Kishor Thapa, secretary at MoTCA, said the long running practice of allowing hotels operate casinos without proper law and guidelines was a mistake.
“Casinos are into operation in Nepal since 1966. Strangely, we do not yet have any Act or regulations or any guidelines to monitor them,” he said, arguing that such a situation had mainly prevented the ministry from taking any action against casino operators.
However, lawmakers did not buy his argument and blamed the lack of monitoring as incompetence of the ministry itself.
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